Neuroscience
Neuroscience: timeline of key events
Date |
Event |
People |
Places |
Magendie is considered a major founder of experimental physiology. He was one of the first to demonstrate the difference between sensory and motor nerves in the spinal cord. His investigations of the effects of drugs on different parts of the body led to the introduction of strychnine and morphine into medical practice. Magendie was also one of the first to observe anaphylaxis, a severe and potentially systemic allergic reaction, which he noticed after doing a second injection of a foreign protein into a rabbit. 1783-10-06T00:00:00+00006 Oct 1783 | | Francois Magendie was born in Bordeaux, FranceMagendie | College of France |
Duchenne, a neurologist, was the first to describe several nervous and muscular disorders and develop medical treatments for them. He provided the first accounts of muscular atrophy and paralysis caused by nerve disorders. This included tabes dorsalis, or locomotor ataxia, a muscular atrophy caused by a degeneration of the dorsal columns of the spinal cord and sensory nerve trunks. He also identified the muscular dystrophy now immortalised with his name. The condition , a severe form of progressive muscle weakness, was first observed by Duchenne in 13 young boys. Duchesne also developed the use of deep tissue biopsy for diagnosis and advanced the science of electro-physiology and electro-therapy. 1806-09-17T00:00:00+000017 Sep 1806 | | Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne was born in Boulogne, FranceDuchenne | |
Jackson is considered one of the founders of modern neurology. He was one of the first to determine structural brain damage can cause abnormal mental states. Jackson showed that epileptic convulsions were linked to lesions of the motor region of the cerebral cortex, the outer layer of the brain. Much of the conceptual framework for clinical neurophysiology today is based on a systematic analytical methods for anatomy, pathology and physiology that Jackson developed. 1835-04-04T00:00:00+00004 Apr 1835 | | John H Jackson was born in Green Hampton, Yorkshire, United KingdomJackson | National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery |
Kocher was a physician and medical researcher who was a major pioneer in the fields of applied surgery, neurosurgery and, especially, thyroid surgery and endocrinology. His success in the field of surgery is attributed to his implementation of antiseptic wound treatment, use of special masks on patients for anaesthesia and controlling blood loss during surgery. Kocher was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1909 for his work on the physiology, pathology and surgery of the thyroid. He was the first Swiss person and first surgeon to ever receive the prize. Within the field of neurosurgery he showed that some epilepsy cases were caused by brain tumours that could be surgically removed.1841-08-25T00:00:00+000025 Aug 1841 | | Emil Theodor Kocher was born in Berne, SwitzerlandKocher | University of Berne |
Golgi was a cytologist and pathologist who shared the 1906 Nobel Prize in Medicine for research into the nervous system. He developed a microscopic staining technique, using silver compounds, for seeing new and unseen structures in nerve tissues and individual neurons in the brain. This he invented in 1873 while working as chief medical officer at the Hospital for the Chronically ill. Golgi was the first to provide clear descriptions of the structure of the cerebellum, hippocampus, spinal cord and olfactory lobe. He also defined striatal and cortical lesions in the case of chorea, a neurological disorder.
1843-07-07T00:00:00+00007 Jul 1843 | | Camillo Golgi was born in Corteno, ItalyGolgi | University of Pavia |
MacEwen was a Scottish physician who developed a technique to locate brain tumours by observing changes in motor and sensory functions. He performed the first successful intracranial surgery in 1879 on a teenage girl. The operation was conducted based on preoperative observation of twitches on her face and arms. The patient lived for another eight years. An autopsy performed after her death showed no trace of her tumour.
1848-06-22T00:00:00+000022 Jun 1848 | | William MacEwen was bornMacEwen | University of Glasgow |
Ramon y Cahal was a histologist and neuroscientist. He combined scientific and artistic skills to uncover the structure of the nervous system. His theory that the brain is made up of individual cells rather than a tangled web is now a fundamental principle in neuroscience. He shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1906 for his discoveries about the structure of the nervous system. 1852-05-01T00:00:00+00001 May 1852 | | Santiago Ramon y Cajal was born in Petilla de Arago, SpainRamon y Cajal | Madrid University |
Magendie is considered a major founder of experimental physiology. He was one of the first to demonstrate the difference between sensory and motor nerves in the spinal cord. His investigations of the effects of drugs on different parts of the body led to the introduction of strychnine and morphine into medical practice. Magendie was also one of the first to observe anaphylaxis, a severe and potentially systemic allergic reaction, which he noticed after doing a second injection of a foreign protein into a rabbit.1855-10-07T00:00:00+00007 Oct 1855 | | Francois Magendie diedMagendie | College of France |
Sherrington was a neurophysiologist, histologist, bacteriologist, and a pathologist who conducted research into the function of neurons. He shared the 1932 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for helping to show that reflexes need integrated activation. Prior to this reflexes were assumed to occur as an isolated activity within a reflex arc.
Sherrington coined the terms synapse and neuron to describe parts of the nerve cell that receive or transmit nervous impulses between cells. 1857-11-27T00:00:00+000027 Nov 1857 | | Charles S Sherrington was born in London, UKSherrington | University of London, University of Liverpool, Oxford University |
Alzheimer was the psychiatrist and neuropathlogist who is credited with identifying the disease named after him. He first came across the disease in 1901 when a 51 year old female woman, Auguste Deter, was admitted to Frankfurt asylum. Her symptoms included a loss of short-term memory. Alzheimer was able to examine her brain after she died in 1906. Using staining techniques he found her brain contained amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, abnormalities that are now associated with Alzheimer's disease. 1864-06-14T00:00:00+000014 Jun 1864 | | Alois Alzheimer was born in Markbreit, GermanyAlzheimer | Frankfurt Asylum |
Cushing was a neurosurgeon who was a major pioneer of brain surgery. He is best known for his work on the pituitary gland and for the first to describe Cushing disease, a condition caused by the body producing too much of a hormone called cortisol, often caused by a tumour or excess growth in the pituitary gland. This leads to swelling in the trunk and face. Cushing also identified several varieties of brain tumours and made great advances in their treatment. Many of the operating procedures and techniques now used in surgery of the brain also come from him.1869-04-08T00:00:00+00008 Apr 1869 | | Harvey W Cushing was born in Cleveland, Ohio, USACushing | Johns Hopkins University |
Berger was a psychiatrist and neurologist who developed the first electroencephalogram (EEG) in 1924 for recording brain wave patterns. His technique involved the insertion of silver wires under the patient's scalp, one at the front and one at the back of the head. Berger's innovation was a historic breakthrough, providing an important neurological and psychological tool. Using the EEG Berger was the first to describe different waves or rhythms in the normal and abnormal brain. Many of his German peers, however, did not recognise the significance of his work. Despite gaining international recognition, the Nazi regime forced Berger into early retirement at the age of 65 and banned him from any further work on the EEG. 1873-05-21T00:00:00+000021 May 1873 | | Hans Berger was born in Coburg, GermanyBerger | Coburg, Germany |
Loewi was a pharmacologist and physician. He is credited with the discovery of the first neurotransmitter, acetylcholine, in the brain. His work provided the first evidence that chemicals were involved in the transmission of impulses between nerve cells and from neurons to the responsive organ. He established this through investigations of the frog. Loewi was awarded the 1936 Nobel Prize for Medicine for his work. 1873-06-03T00:00:00+00003 Jun 1873 | | Otto Loewi was born in Frankfurt-on-the-Main, GermanyLoewi | Graz University |
Erlanger was a physiologist who shared the 1944 Nobel Prize for Medicine with Herbert Graasser for working out the actions of nerve fibers. This they achieved by modifying a Western Electric oscilloscope to run at low voltages. The innovation enabled them to discover that neurons come in many forms and transmit impulses at different rates. 1874-01-05T00:00:00+00005 Jan 1874 | | Joseph Erlanger was born in San Francisco CA, USAErlanger | Washington University in St Louis |
Moniz was a neurologist who pioneered the use of cerebral angiography. He developed the procedure on the back of his idea that the ability to visualise blood vessels would provide a more precise means to locate brain tumours. His technique involved the injection of radiopaque dyes into brain arteries and taking X-rays to see if there were any abnormalities. First presented in 1927, Moniz's technique paved the pay to using angiography to detect internal blockages of the artery. He was also awarded the Nobel Prize in 1949 for his development of lobotomy for treating certain psychoses. 1874-11-29T00:00:00+000029 Nov 1874 | | Antonio Egas Moniz was born in Avanca, Estarreja, PortugalMoniz | University of Lisbon |
Dale was a pharmacologist and physiologist who helped identify acetylcholine, the first neurotransmitter discovered, in 1914. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1936 on the basis of this work and uncovering the chemical process by which nerve impulses are transmitted. During the 1940s he drew up a scheme to differentiate neurons according to the neurotransmitters they release. 1875-06-09T00:00:00+00009 Jun 1875 | | Henry H Dale was born in London, UKDale | National Institute for Medical Research |
Duchenne, a French neurologist, was the first to describe several nervous and muscular disorders and develop medical treatments for them. He provided the first accounts of muscular atrophy and paralysis caused by nerve disorders. This included tabes dorsalis, or locomotor ataxia, a muscular atrophy caused by a degeneration of the dorsal columns of the spinal cord and sensory nerve trunks. He also identified the muscular dystrophy now immortalised with his name. The condition , a severe form of progressive muscle weakness, was first observed by Duchenne in 13 young boys. Duchesne also developed the use of deep tissue biopsy for diagnosis and advanced the science of electro-physiology and electro-therapy.1875-09-18T00:00:00+000018 Sep 1875 | | Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne diedDuchenne | |
Hess was a physiologist who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1949 for identifying parts of the brain that control internal organs. He used brain stimulation techniques using electrodes to map regions of the brain associated with specific physiological responses. This he did using cats in the 1930s. He also found it possible to induce excitement and apathy by stimulating different parts of the hypothalamus1881-03-17T00:00:00+000017 Mar 1881 | | Walter R Hess was born in Frauenfeld, SwitzerlandHess | University of Zurich |
Gasser was a physiologist. He shared the 1944 Nobel Prize for Medicine for discovering different fibres in nerves that conduct electrochemical pulses at different rates. Together with Joseph Erlanger he studied the barely detectable electrical impulses carried by mammalian nerve fibres. By 1924 they had managed to visualise amplified nerve impulses on a fluorescent screen. Their work demonstrated that one type of fibre conducts pain signals and others conduct motor control signals. Gasser was the director of the Rockefeller Institute from 1936 to 1953.
1888-07-05T00:00:00+00005 Jul 1888 | | Herbert Spencer Gasser was born in Platteville WI, USAGasser | Rockefeller Institute |
Adrian was an electrophysiologist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1932 for his discoveries relating to the nerve cell. This he did with the help of a capillary electrometer and cathode ray tube to amplify the signals produced by the nerve system. Recording the electrical discharge of single nerve fibres under stimulus in a frog he was the first to prove the presence of electricity within nerve cells. This paved the way to a better understanding of the physical basis of sensation and the mechanism of muscular control. His work on the electrical activity of the brain opened up new investigations into epilepsy and the location of cerebral lesions. 1889-11-30T00:00:00+000030 Nov 1889 | | Edgar Douglas Adrian born in London, UKAdrian | Cambridge University |
Granit was a physiologist who was jointly awarded Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1967 for demonstrating the internal electrical changes that take place in the eye when exposed to light. He was the first to show that single nerve fibres can distinguish between different wavelengths of light. Granit also studied the control of movement, particularly the role of muscle sense-organs called muscle spindles and tendon organs. This enabled him to establish the neural pathways and processes by which internal receptors regulate and coordinate muscle action. 1900-10-30T00:00:00+000030 Oct 1900 | | Ragnar Granit was born in Helsinki, FinlandGranit | Karolinska Institute |
Eccles was a neurophysiologist whose discoveries relating to peripheral and central portions of the nerve cell membrane in the early 1950s won him the 1963 Nobel Prize for Medicine. He and colleagues also conducted experiments that proved chemical synaptic transmission and uncovered the role of acetylcholine as a neurotransmitter in the brain.1903-01-27T00:00:00+000027 Jan 1903 | | John C Eccles was born in Melbourne, AustraliaEccles | Australian National University |
Kosterlitz was a phamacologist whose initial his career focused on investigating carbohydrate metabolism. Forced to leave Germany in 1934 as a result of his Jewish background, Kosterlitz landed up in Aberdeen where he took up the study of the effects of proteins on liver function. His work in this area helped shaped the guidelines for the intake of proteins during pregnancy. Kosterlitz subsequently switched to investigating the pharmacology of opiates. He demonstrated that morphine inhibited the release of neurotransmitters and that various opiates could inhibit the release of acetylcholine. In the 1970s he discovered enkephalin, the first endogenous opioid.1903-04-27T00:00:00+000027 Apr 1903 | | Hans Kosterlitz was born in Berlin, GermanyKosterlitz | University of Aberdeen |
Vogt was a pharmacologist who left Nazi Germany in 1933 for Britain where she became one of the leading neuroscientists of the twentieth century. Her most important contribution was advancing knowledge about the role of neurotransmitters in the brain. She demonstrated that the hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine enable brain cells to communicate. In 1954 she published a paper on sympathin which helped to establish the important role of amines in the brain and paved the way to the development of modern anti-depressant therapy.1903-09-08T00:00:00+00008 Sep 1903 | | Marthe L Vogt was born in Berlin, GermanyVogt | National Institute for Medical Research |
Von Euler was a physiologist and pharmacologist best known for working out the distribution and fate of noradrenaline in biological tissues and the nervous system. In 1970 he shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine for 'discoveries concerning the humoral transmittors in the nerve terminals and the mechanism for their storage, release and inactivation.'1905-02-07T00:00:00+00007 Feb 1905 | | Ulf von Euler was born in Stockholm, Swedenvon Euler | Karolinska Institute |
Levi-Montalcini is best known for sharing the Nobel Prize in 1986 for helping to discover and isolate the nerve growth factor which helps regulate the growth, maintenance, proliferation and survival of certain neurons. Banned by Mussolini from working in academia because she was Jewish, Levi-Montalcini conducted much of her early work in a makeshift laboratory in her bedroom. She later became the director of the Research Center of Neurobiology and the Laboratory of Cellular Biology in Washington University and founded the European Brain Research Institute. 1909-04-22T00:00:00+000022 Apr 1909 | | Rita Levi-Montalcini was born in Turin, ItalyLevi-Montalcini | Washington University |
Katz was a physician and biophysicist who was forced to flee Nazi Germany for Britain as a child because of his Jewish background. He is best known for having uncovered the properties of synapses, the junction between two nerve cells where signals pass between nerve cells and other types of cells. In 1970 he shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine for 'discoveries concerning the humoral transmittors in the nerve terminals and the mechanism for their storage, release and inactivation.' His work laid the foundation for investigations into the effects of nerve agents and pesticides. 1911-03-26T00:00:00+000026 Mar 1911 | | Bernard Katz was born in Leipzig, GermanyKatz | University College London |
Jackson is considered one of the founders of modern neurology. He was one of the first to determine structural brain damage can cause abnormal mental states. Jackson showed that epileptic convulsions were linked to lesions of the motor region of the cerebral cortex, the outer layer of the brain. Much of the conceptual framework for clinical neurophysiology today is based on a systematic analytical methods for anatomy, pathology and physiology that Jackson developed.1911-10-07T00:00:00+00007 Oct 1911 | | John H Jackson diedJackson | National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery |
Axelrod was a pharmacologist and biochemist who shared the 1970 Nobel Prize for Medicine for his discovery of the important role of neurotransmitters in the regulation of the nervous system. His work laid the foundation for the development of drugs for pain relief and a new class of antidepressants. Axelrod also helped demonstrate how the pineal gland is regulated during the sleep-awake cycle. 1912-05-30T00:00:00+000030 May 1912 | | Julius Axelrod was born in New York, NY, USAAxelrod | National Institutes of Health |
Sperry was a neuropsychologist and neurobiologst. He is best known for having shown that the two hemispheres of the brain function independently of one another and have completely different functions, a phenomenon he called the 'split brain'. This he determined based on experiments in 1950s and 1960s. In the first set of experiments he severed the corpus callosum, the large bundle of neurons that connects the two parts of the brain, in cats and monkeys. Later he studied humans who had had their corpus callosum severed as part of their treatment for epilepsy. He was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1981 for 'discoveries concerning the functional specialization of the cerebral hemispheres.'1913-08-20T00:00:00+000020 Aug 1913 | | Roger W Sperry was born in Hartford CT, USASperry | California Institute of Technology |
Hodgkin was a physiologist and biophysicist who helped discover, with Andrew F Huxley, the chemical processes responsible for the transmission of electrical impulses from one nerve cell in the brain through to other nerve fibers. This they did based on experiments involving the introduction of microelectrodes into the giant nerve fibre of the squid. Hodgkin received the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1963 for this work. 1914-02-05T00:00:00+00005 Feb 1914 | | Alan Lloyd Hodgkin was born in Banbury, UKA Hodgkin | Cambridge University |
Alzheimer was a German psychiatrist and neuropathlogist who is credited with identifying the disease named after him. He first came across the disease in 1901 when a 51 year old female woman, Auguste Deter, was admitted to Frankfurt asylum. Her symptoms included a loss of short-term memory. Alzheimer was able to examine her brain after she died in 1906. Using staining techniques he found her brain contained amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, abnormalities that are now associated with Alzheimer's disease.1915-12-19T00:00:00+000019 Dec 1915 | | Alois Alzheimer diedAlzheimer | Frankfurt Asylum |
Kocher was a Swiss physician and medical researcher who was a major pioneer in the fields of applied surgery, neurosurgery and, especially, thyroid surgery and endocrinology. His success in the field of surgery is attributed to his implementation of antiseptic wound treatment, use of special masks on patients for anaesthesia and controlling blood loss during surgery. Kocher was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1909 for his work on the physiology, pathology and surgery of the thyroid. He was the first Swiss person and first surgeon to ever receive the prize. Within the field of neurosurgery he showed that some epilepsy cases were caused by brain tumours that could be surgically removed. 1917-07-27T00:00:00+000027 Jul 1917 | | Emil Theodor Kocher diedKocher | University of Berne |
Huxley was a physiologist and biophysicist who helped uncover the mechanism of muscle contraction in 1954 through experiments on the giant axon of the Atlantic Squid. His study of muscle fibres was helped by his development of interference microscopy. Huxley shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1963 for 'discoveries concerning the ionic mechanisms involved in excitation and inhibition in the peripheral and central portions of the nerve cell membrane'. 1917-11-22T00:00:00+000022 Nov 1917 | | Andrew F Huxley was born in Hampstead, UKHuxley | Cambridge University, University College London |
Carlsson was a neuropharmacologist who shared the 2000 Nobel Prize for Medicine for 'discoveries concerning signal transduction in the nervous system.' This was based on the work he did in 1957 in which he demonstrated dopamine to be a brain neurotransmitter that was connected with the control of movement. He went on to show that the drug L-Dopa, a precursor of dopamnine, could help alleviate the symptoms in patients with early-stage Parkinson's disease. His research also paved the way to the development of fluoxetine (Prozac), one of today's most widely used antidepressant drugs. 1923-01-25T00:00:00+000025 Jan 1923 | | Arvid Carlsson was born in Uppsala, SwedenCarlsson | Goteborg University |
MacEwen was a Scottish physician who developed a technique to locate brain tumours by observing changes in motor and sensory functions. He performed the first successful intracranial surgery in 1879 on a teenage girl. The operation was conducted based on preoperative observation of twitches on her face and arms. The patient lived for another eight years. An autopsy performed after her death showed no trace of her tumour.1924-03-22T00:00:00+000022 Mar 1924 | | William MacEwen diedMacEwan | University of Glasgow |
Paintal was a scientist who spent his career investigating cardiovascular sensory mechanisms. He pioneered single-fibre dissection and electrophysiological techniques which made it possible for him to record different impulses from individual sensory receptors in the body. Using these methods he identified several sensory receptors, including atrial B receptors, pulmonary J-receptors, ventricular pressure receptors, stomach stretch receptors, and muscle pain receptors.
1925-09-24T00:00:00+000024 Sep 1925 | | Autar Singh Paintal was born in Mogok, IndiaPaintal | All India Institute of Medical Sciences, University College of Medical Sciences, Indian Council of Medical Research |
Greengard is a neurobiologist who shared the 2000 Nobel Prize for Medicine for his discovery of how the neurotransmitter, dopamine, functions in the nervous system. Beginning this work in the late 1960s, Greengaard showed that dopamine binds to receptors on the outer membrane of a neuron. This stimulates a second messenger, cyclic AMP, which in itself activates an enzyme that adds phosphate molecules to other proteins in the neuron. Greengard's work has paved the way to greater understanding of certain neurological and psychiatric disorders and development of new treatments. 1925-12-11T00:00:00+000011 Dec 1925 | | Paul Greengard was born in New York, USAGreengard | Rockefeller University |
Golgi was a cytologist and pathologist who shared the 1906 Nobel Prize in Medicine for research into the nervous system. He developed a microscopic staining technique, using silver compounds, for seeing new and unseen structures in nerve tissues and individual neurons in the brain. This he invented in 1873 while working as chief medical officer at the Hospital for the Chronically ill. Golgi was the first to provide clear descriptions of the structure of the cerebellum, hippocampus, spinal cord and olfactory lobe. He also defined striatal and cortical lesions in the case of chorea, a neurological disorder.1926-01-21T00:00:00+000021 Jan 1926 | | Camillo Golgi diedGolgi | University of Pavia |
Kandel is a neuroscientist who won the 2000 Nobel Prize for Medicine for working out the physiological basis of memory storage in neurons. He determined this on the basis of studying Aplysia californica, a sea slug. The advantage of the slug is that is has large nerve cells amenable to experimental manipulation and is a member of the simplest group of animals known to be capable of learning. Kandel and his Jewish parents were forced to leave Austria after Germany annexed the country. 1929-11-07T00:00:00+00007 Nov 1929 | | Eric R Kandel was born in Vienna, AustriaKandel | Columbia University |
Ramon y Cahal was a Spanish histologist and neuroscientist. He combined scientific and artistic skills to uncover the structure of the nervous system. His theory that the brain is made up of individual cells rather than a tangled web is now a fundamental principle in neuroscience. He shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1906 for his discoveries about the structure of the nervous system. 1934-10-17T00:00:00+000017 Oct 1934 | | Santiago Ramon y Cajal diedRamon y Cajal | Madrid University |
Cushing was an American neurosurgeon who was a major pioneer of brain surgery. He is best known for his work on the pituitary gland and for the first to describe Cushing disease, a condition caused by the body producing too much of a hormone called cortisol, often caused by a tumour or excess growth in the pituitary gland. This leads to swelling in the trunk and face. Cushing also identified several varieties of brain tumours and made great advances in their treatment. Many of the operating procedures and techniques now used in surgery of the brain also come from him.1939-10-07T00:00:00+00007 Oct 1939 | | Harvey W Cushing diedCushing | Johns Hopkins University |
Berger was a psychiatrist and neurologist who developed the first electroencephalogram (EEG) in 1924 for recording brain wave patterns. His technique involved the insertion of silver wires under the patient's scalp, one at the front and one at the back of the head. Berger's innovation was a historic breakthrough, providing an important neurological and psychological tool. Using the EEG Berger was the first to describe different waves or rhythms in the normal and abnormal brain. Many of his German peers, however, did not recognise the significance of his work. Despite gaining international recognition, the Nazi regime forced Berger into early retirement at the age of 65 and banned him from any further work on the EEG.
1941-06-01T00:00:00+00001 Jun 1941 | | Hans Berger diedBerger | |
Prusiner is a biochemist and neurologist who is known for his discovery of prions in 1982, a class of proteins he believed caused infections by improper protein folding, resulting in fatal disease in the brain and neural tissue. Initially the scientific community was sceptical of Prusiner's work, but by the 1990s prions had become linked to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), known as mad cow's disease, and its human equivalent, Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (CJD). Prions are now being investigated as a possible cause of Alzheimer's disease and Parkinsons. Prusiner was awarded the 1997 Nobel Prize in Medicine for his discovery of prions.1942-05-28T00:00:00+000028 May 1942 | | Stanley B Prusiner was born in Des Moines, Iowa, USAPrusiner | University College San Francisco |
Axel is a neuroscientist who shared the 2004 Nobel Prize for Medicine for his findings relating to the olefactory system. In 1991 he and Linda Buck worked out the process for how nearly 1000 genes code for oderant sensors located in the back of the nasal cavity. Each receptor, they showed, is a protein that changes whenever an oderant gets attached to the receptor. This reaction causes an electrical signal to be sent to the brain. Axel is the son of Polish immigrants who escaped to New York when the Nazis invaded their homeland. 1946-07-02T00:00:00+00002 Jul 1946 | | Richard Axel was born in New York City, USAAxel | New York City |
A biochemist and cell biologist by training, Rothman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2013. He received the Prize for helping to show how vesicles - small sac-like structures inside cells that carry hormones, growth factors and other molecules- determine when they have reached their correct destination to release their contents. This mechanism is vital to many key physiological functions, including cellular division, the secretion of hormones like insulin, communication between nerve cells in the brain and nutrient uptake. When this process breaks down it can lead to conditions like diabetes and botulism.
1950-11-03T00:00:00+00003 Nov 1950 | | James E Rothman was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, USARothman | Stanford University, Princeton University, Columbia University |
Sherrington was a British neurophysiologist, histologist, bacteriologist, and a pathologist who conducted research into the function of neurons. He shared the 1932 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for helping to show that reflexes need integrated activation. Prior to this reflexes were assumed to occur as an isolated activity within a reflex arc. Sherrington coined the terms synapse and neuron to describe parts of the nerve cell that receive or transmit nervous impulses between cells1952-03-04T00:00:00+00004 Mar 1952 | | Charles S Sherrington diedSherrington | University of London, University of Liverpool, Oxford University |
By transferring tumours to chick embryos, Levi-Montalcini noticed that certain cancerous tissue caused extremely rapid growth of nerve cells. She described it as 'like rivulets of water flowing steadily over a bed of stones.' R Levi-Montalcini, 'Effects of mouse tumor transplantation on the nervous system', Annals of the NY Academy of Sciences, 55/2 (1952), 330-44.1952-08-08T00:00:00+00001952 | | Rita Levi-Montalcini announced isolation of nerve-growth factorLevi-Montalcini | Washington University in St. Louis |
Moniz was a Portuguese neurologist who pioneered the use of cerebral angiography. He developed the procedure on the back of his idea that the ability to visualise blood vessels would provide a more precise means to locate brain tumours. His technique involved the injection of radiopaque dyes into brain arteries and taking X-rays to see if there were any abnormalities. First presented in 1927, Moniz's technique paved the pay to using angiography to detect internal blockages of the artery. He was also awarded the Nobel Prize in 1949 for his development of lobotomy for treating certain psychoses.1955-12-13T00:00:00+000013 Dec 1955 | | Egas Moniz diedMoniz | University of Lisbon |
Loewi was a German pharmacologist and physician. He is credited with the discovery of the first neurotransmitter, acetylcholine, in the brain. His work provided the first evidence that chemicals were involved in the transmission of impulses between nerve cells and from neurons to the responsive organ. He established this through investigations of the frog. Loewi was awarded the 1936 Nobel Prize for Medicine for his work.1961-12-25T00:00:00+000025 Dec 1961 | | Otto Loewi diedLoewi | Graz University |
May-Britt Moser is best known the pioneering research she did with her husband, Edvard, on the brain's mechanism for representing space. In 2005 they discovered a type of nerve cell near the hippocampus that helps with navigation. They were awarded the Nobel Prize in 2014 on the back of this work. 1963-01-04T00:00:00+00004 Jan 1963 | | May-Britt Moser born in Fosnavag, NorwayMay-Britt Moser | Norwegian University of Science and Technology |
Gasser was an American physiologist. He shared the 1944 Nobel Prize for Medicine for discovering different fibers in nerves that conduct electrochemical pulses at different rates. Together with Joseph Erlanger he studied the barely detectable electrical impulses carried by mammalian nerve fibres. By 1924 they had managed to visualise amplified nerve impulses on a fluorescent screen. Their work demonstrated that one type of fiber conducts pain signals and others conduct motor control signals. Gasser was the director of the Rockefeller Institute from 1936 to 1953.1963-05-11T00:00:00+000011 May 1963 | | Herbert Spencer Gasser diedGasser | Rockefeller Institute |
Erlanger was an American physiologist who shared the 1944 Nobel Prize for Medicine with Herbert Graasser for working out the actions of nerve fibers. This they achieved by modifying a Western Electric oscilloscope to run at low voltages. The innovation enabled them to discover that neurons come in many forms and transmit impulses at different rates. 1965-12-05T00:00:00+00005 Dec 1965 | | Joseph Erlanger diedErlanger | Washington University in St Louis |
Dale was a British pharmacologist and physiologist who helped identify acetylcholine, the first neurotransmitter discovered, in 1914. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1936 on the basis of this work and uncovering the chemical process by which nerve impulses are transmitted. During the 1940s he drew up a scheme to differentiate neurons according to the neurotransmitters they release.1968-07-23T00:00:00+000023 Jul 1968 | | Henry H Dale diedDale | National Institute for Medical Research |
Hess was a Swiss physiologist who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1949 for identifying parts of the brain that control internal organs. He used brain stimulation techniques using electrodes to map regions of the brain associated with specific physiological responses. This he did using cats in the 1930s. He also found it possible to induce excitement and apathy by stimulating different parts of the hypothalamus. 1973-08-12T00:00:00+000012 Aug 1973 | | Walter R Hess diedHess | University of Zurich |
Adrian was a British electrophysiologist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1932 for his discoveries relating to the nerve cell. This he did with the help of a capillary electrometer and cathode ray tube to amplify the signals produced by the nerve system. Recording the electrical discharge of single nerve fibres under stimulus in a frog he was the first to prove the presence of electricity within nerve cells. This paved the way to a better understanding of the physical basis of sensation and the mechanism of muscular control. His work on the electrical activity of the brain opened up new investigations into epilepsy and the location of cerebral lesions.1977-08-04T00:00:00+00004 Aug 1977 | | Edgar Douglas Adrian diedAdrian | Cambridge University |
Von Euler was a Swedish physiologist and pharmacologist best known for working out the distribution and fate of noradrenaline in biological tissues and the nervous system. In 1970 he shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine for 'discoveries concerning the humoral transmittors in the nerve terminals and the mechanism for their storage, release and inactivation.'1983-03-09T00:00:00+00009 Mar 1983 | | Ulf von Euler diedvon Euler | Karolinska Institute |
Granit was a Finish-Swedish physiologist who was jointly awarded Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1967 for demonstrating the internal electrical changes that take place in the eye when exposed to light. He was the first to show that single nerve fibres can distinguish between different wavelengths of light. Granit also studied the control of movement, particularly the role of muscle sense-organs called muscle spindles and tendon organs. This enabled him to establish the neural pathways and processes by which internal receptors regulate and coordinate muscle action.1991-03-12T00:00:00+000012 Mar 1991 | | Ragnar Granit diedGranit | Karolinska Institute |
Sperry was an American neuropsychologist and neurobiologst. He is best known for having shown that the two hemispheres of the brain function independently of one another and have completely different functions, a phenomenon he called the 'split brain'. This he determined based on experiments in 1950s and 1960s. In the first set of experiments he severed the corpus callosum, the large bundle of neurons that connects the two parts of the brain, in cats and monkeys. Later he studied humans who had had their corpus callosum severed as part of their treatment for epilepsy. He was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1981 for 'discoveries concerning the functional specialization of the cerebral hemispheres.'1994-04-17T00:00:00+000017 Apr 1994 | | Roger W Sperry diedSperry | California Institute of Technology |
Kosterlitz was a German phamacologist whose initial his career focused on investigating carbohydrate metabolism. Forced to leave Germany in 1934 as a result of his Jewish background, Kosterlitz landed up in Aberdeen where he took up the study of the effects of proteins on liver function. His work in this area helped shaped the guidelines for the intake of proteins during pregnancy. Kosterlitz subsequently switched to investigating the pharmacology of opiates. He demonstrated that morphine inhibited the release of neurotransmitters and that various opiates could inhibit the release of acetylcholine. In the 1970s he discovered enkephalin, the first endogenous opioid1996-10-26T00:00:00+000026 Oct 1996 | | Hans Kosterlitz diedKosterlitz | University of Aberdeen |
Eccles was an neurophysiologist whose discoveries relating to peripheral and central portions of the nerve cell membrane in the early 1950s won him the 1963 Nobel Prize for Medicine. He and colleagues also conducted experiments that proved chemical synaptic transmission and uncovered the role of acetylcholine as a neurotransmitter in the brain.1997-05-02T00:00:00+00002 May 1997 | | John C Eccles diedEccles | Australian National University |
Prions are a class of proteins that cause infections by improper protein folding, resulting in fatal disease in the brain and neural tissue. Initially the scientific community was sceptical of Prusiner's work, but by the 1990s prions had been demonstrated to be linked to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), known as mad cow's disease, and its human equivalent, Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (CJD). Prions are now being investigated as a possible cause of Alzheimer's disease and Parkinsons. 1997-10-06T00:00:00+00006 Oct 1997 | | Stanley Prusiner was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine for his discovery of prionsPrusiner | University College San Francisco |
Hodgkin was an English physiologist and biophysicist who helped discover, with Andrew F Huxley, the chemical processes responsible for the transmission of electrical impulses from one nerve cell in the brain through to other nerve fibers. This they did based on experiments involving the introduction of microelectrodes into the giant nerve fibre of the squid. Hodgkin received the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1963 for this work. 1998-12-20T00:00:00+000020 Dec 1998 | | Alan Lloyd Hodgkin diedA Hodgkin | Cambridge University |
Research carried out by Ramin Shiekhattar published in Journal of Biological Chemistry. 2002-08-20T00:00:00+000020 Aug 2002 | | Link identified between genes responsible for neurofibromatosis, a common neurological disorder, and a protein thought to play role in Alzheimer's diseaseShiekhattar | Wistar Institute |
Katz was a physician and biophysicist who was forced to flee Nazi Germany for Britain as a child because of his Jewish background. He is best known for having uncovered the properties of synapses, the junction between two nerve cells where signals pass between nerve cells and other types of cells. In 1970 he shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine for 'discoveries concerning the humoral transmittors in the nerve terminals and the mechanism for their storage, release and inactivation.' His work laid the foundation for investigations into the effects of nerve agents and pesticides.
2003-04-20T00:00:00+000020 Apr 2003 | | Bernard Katz diedKatz | University College London |
Vogt was a German pharmacologist who left Nazi Germany for Britain where she became one of the leading neuroscientists of the twentieth century. Her most important contribution was advancing knowledge about the role of neurotransmitters in the brain. She demonstrated that the hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine enable brain cells to communicate. In 1954 she published a paper on sympathin which helped to establish the important role of amines in the brain and paved the way to the development of modern anti-depressant therapy. 2003-09-09T00:00:00+00009 Sep 2003 | | Marthe L Vogt diedVogt | National Institute for Medical Research |
Paintal was an Indian scientist who spent his career investigating cardiovascular sensory mechanisms. He pioneered single-fibre dissection and electrophysiological techniques which made it possible for him to record different impulses from individual sensory receptors in the body. Using these methods he identified several sensory receptors, including atrial B receptors, pulmonary J-receptors, ventricular pressure receptors, stomach stretch receptors, and muscle pain receptors.
2004-12-21T00:00:00+000021 Dec 2004 | | Autar Singh Paintal diedPaintal | All India Institute of Medical Sciences, University College of Medical Sciences, Indian Council of Medical Research |
Axelrod was a pharmacologist and biochemist who shared the 1970 Nobel Prize for Medicine for his discovery of the important role of neurotransmitters in the regulation of the nervous system. His work laid the foundation for the development of drugs for pain relief and a new class of antidepressants. Axelrod also helped demonstrate how the pineal gland is regulated during the sleep-awake cycle.2004-12-29T00:00:00+000029 Dec 2004 | | Julius Axelrod diedAxelrod | National Institutes of Health |
The finding was made by the husband and wife team May-Britt Moser and Edvard I Moser together with John O'Keefe after conducting experiments with rats. They found that when a rat developed nerve cells that form a co-ordinate system for navigation when they passed certain points on a hexagonal grid. The teams work laid the foundation for new understandings about the cognitive processes and spacial deficits associated with neurological disorders like Alzheimer's disease. 2005-01-01T00:00:00+00001 Jan 2005 | | Discovery of nerve cell that allows the brain to determine spatial position May-Britt Moser, Edvard Moser, O'Keefe | Norwegian University of Science and Technology |
Huxley was and English physiologist an biophysicist who helped uncover the mechanism of muscle contraction in 1954 through experiments on the giant axon of the Atlantic Squid. His study of muscle fibres was helped by his development of interference microscopy. Huxley shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1963 for 'discoveries concerning the ionic mechanisms involved in excitation and inhibition in the peripheral and central portions of the nerve cell membrane'. 2012-05-30T00:00:00+000030 May 2012 | | Andrew F Huxley diedHuxley | Cambridge University, University College London |
Levi-Montalcini is best known for sharing the Nobel Prize in 1986 for helping to discover and isolate the nerve growth factor which helps regulate the growth, maintenance, proliferation and survival of certain neurons. Banned by Mussolini from working in academia because she was Jewish, Levi-Montalcini conducted much of her early work in a makeshift laboratory in her bedroom. She later became the director of the Research Center of Neurobiology and the Laboratory of Cellular Biology in Washington University and founded the European Brain Research Institute.
2012-12-30T00:00:00+000030 Dec 2012 | | Rita Levi-Montalcini diedLevi-Montalcini | Institute of Cell Biology of the CNR |
J. Sevigny et al, 'The antibody aducanumab reduces A-beta plaques in Alzheimer’s disease', 'Nature', 37 (2016), 50-56.2016-09-01T00:00:00+00001 Sep 2016 | | Monoclonal antibody drug for Alzheimer's Disease shown to be promising in phase II clinical trialsSevigny, Chiao, Bussiere, Weinreb | Biogen, Neuimmune, Butler Hospital, University of Zurch |
Carlsson was a Swedish neuropharmacologist who shared the 2000 Nobel Prize for Medicine for 'discoveries concerning signal transduction in the nervous system.' This was based on the work he did in 1957 in which he demonstrated dopamine to be a brain neurotransmitter that was connected with the control of movement. He went on to show that the drug L-Dopa, a precursor of dopamnine, could help alleviate the symptoms in patients with early-stage Parkinson's disease. His research also paved the way to the development of fluoxetine (Prozac), one of today's most widely used antidepressant drugs. 2018-06-29T00:00:00+000029 Jun 2018 | | Arvid Carlsson diedCarlsson | Goteborg University |
Francois Magendie was born in Bordeaux, France
Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne was born in Boulogne, France
John H Jackson was born in Green Hampton, Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Emil Theodor Kocher was born in Berne, Switzerland
Camillo Golgi was born in Corteno, Italy
Santiago Ramon y Cajal was born in Petilla de Arago, Spain
Charles S Sherrington was born in London, UK
Alois Alzheimer was born in Markbreit, Germany
Harvey W Cushing was born in Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Hans Berger was born in Coburg, Germany
Otto Loewi was born in Frankfurt-on-the-Main, Germany
Joseph Erlanger was born in San Francisco CA, USA
Antonio Egas Moniz was born in Avanca, Estarreja, Portugal
Henry H Dale was born in London, UK
Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne died
Walter R Hess was born in Frauenfeld, Switzerland
Herbert Spencer Gasser was born in Platteville WI, USA
Edgar Douglas Adrian born in London, UK
Ragnar Granit was born in Helsinki, Finland
John C Eccles was born in Melbourne, Australia
Hans Kosterlitz was born in Berlin, Germany
Marthe L Vogt was born in Berlin, Germany
Ulf von Euler was born in Stockholm, Sweden
Rita Levi-Montalcini was born in Turin, Italy
Bernard Katz was born in Leipzig, Germany
Julius Axelrod was born in New York, NY, USA
Roger W Sperry was born in Hartford CT, USA
Alan Lloyd Hodgkin was born in Banbury, UK
Andrew F Huxley was born in Hampstead, UK
Arvid Carlsson was born in Uppsala, Sweden
Autar Singh Paintal was born in Mogok, India
Paul Greengard was born in New York, USA
Eric R Kandel was born in Vienna, Austria
Santiago Ramon y Cajal died
Stanley B Prusiner was born in Des Moines, Iowa, USA
Richard Axel was born in New York City, USA
James E Rothman was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, USA
Charles S Sherrington died
Rita Levi-Montalcini announced isolation of nerve-growth factor
May-Britt Moser born in Fosnavag, Norway
Herbert Spencer Gasser died
Edgar Douglas Adrian died
Stanley Prusiner was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine for his discovery of prions
Link identified between genes responsible for neurofibromatosis, a common neurological disorder, and a protein thought to play role in Alzheimer's disease
Discovery of nerve cell that allows the brain to determine spatial position
Rita Levi-Montalcini died
Monoclonal antibody drug for Alzheimer's Disease shown to be promising in phase II clinical trials
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